My name is Hannah. I'm 19 years old and I'm a junior in college. Yes, it's really weird sometimes, most of my friends are turning 21 or already are. Some 19-year-olds are college freshman, you get the idea. How did I get here? Well, here's the breakdown, I was born at the end of July, so I was always one of the youngest in my class anyway. When I was a junior and senior in high school, I took a total of three Advanced Placement classes (that earned me 10 credit hours) and 22 hours through the community college, which put me a year ahead in college, and I've stayed on track since.
The first year I was in college, I tried to explain it all to everyone. This year I've resorted to “it's complicated.” And it really is. Sometimes I feel so confused because I'm looking towards graduation and preparing for my professional life after college... Then I remember that I'm 19, and 19-year-olds don't think about this kind of stuff. We are supposed to be unsure of what we want and changing our major from psychology to education to pre-law and back again. I sometimes question if I can really have this part of my life figured out (for the most part) or do I have to “live life” a little bit more before I truly “find myself.” People say I have “a good head on my shoulders.” But I don't think that's it. I do not believe myself to be the exception to the rule.
Thinking back on my choices in high school, I really did not do anything extraordinary, I mean, yeah, the AP classes were killer, as is the nature of AP classes. The other classes, though, were not. In fact, they were pretty relaxed and easier than most high school classes. I think I just saw an opportunity and took it. Isn't that the beauty of the world we live in though? We have so many opportunities just waiting to be taken. Even if you don't have the opportunity to take a college course early, we can shadow just about any professional if we ask. So why aren't more people taking these opportunities? Why do we not hear of more young people not fitting into the stereotypes? And more importantly, why do we still have so many stereotypes? We are written off as an overachiever for starting college early, and we're written off as a slacker if we start college late. When are we as young people going to stop feeling like we have to fit these stereotypes?
I came across a verse again recently that gave me some answers to all these questions, and if you've ever been to any sort of youth group you've probably heard it too. 1 Timothy 4:12 says “Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” We hear this so many times and usually in the context of being a teenager, spreading the good word of faith, because that is what Timothy was doing. Looking at it now, I think it is more than that. We can apply this verse to our lives wherever we may be and whatever age we may be. I think it's important to note that this verse does not tell people not to judge us because we are young. People will always judge.
Instead, this tells us that we have the choice to let it affect us or not. If you feel like you need to backpack across Europe for a year before starting college, don't allow the judgement of others stop you. For all they know, God may use that trip to open amazing doors in your life. I've taken the opportunities to get me where I am in my life, and I do not need to feel bad about them because I'm following the path God made for me and striving to be a good example for those looking towards me. I think people will always have expectations for every age group, but it is our responsibility to take the opportunities presented to us regardless of that. Then we will truly be applying the verse from first Timothy to our lives.
